Kadic Academy, Running track, Wednesday 4:10 PM: Jeremy looked nervously at the field, the place where he'd have his first test and where, to his utter humiliation, he would be scored as a female. He looked down, his grey sweatshirt and pants a contrast against the green grass of the playing field that was set inside the light brown oval running track. He felt utterly unprepared and worse, he didn't have the specter program to augment his abilities so he was on his own, with only his friend's deal to work with. It was, in short, terrifying and was making him wonder if this was how the others felt when they had to depend solely on his programming skills to survive. Jim's voice cut through his thinking like a grenade would have and he snapped his head up to face the towering teacher.
"Jeremy! Since we are all outside for this afternoon's game, you will be doing a test of your physical condition."
Jeremy nodded weakly and wanted to simply wither under Jim's intense glare, but he couldn't. Ulrich and the rest were counting on him to pass this test. He stole a quick glance at Aelita, trying desperately to ignore the sinking feeling as he looked over the collection of faces.
Jim glanced at Jeremy and then over where the running track met the grass, "That is where we'll be conducting the running portion of your test." He looked over the rest of the class and noticed Jeremy starting to head towards the edge of the field. "After you perform your initial warm up stretches with the rest of the class," Jim added gruffly.
Jeremy snapped his head back to Jim when he started speaking, but not before catching Aelita's wink at him from the corner of his eye. He smiled slightly and began to walk to the track's edge so that he would be out of the way of the other students and their game. Jim's second statement caused him stop in his tracks then reluctantly head back towards the group.
"You should be grateful," Aelita whispered to him when he got close enough, "if you hadn't done your stretches and Yumi found out, she would have killed you."
Jeremy nodded, recalling Yumi's parting advice before she separated to go to her next class. She had reminded him to stretch out before beginning the test and that if he hurt himself because he didn't, she would be severely disappointed. But he really had wanted to skip that step; it was just a waste of energy that he doubted he had to spare. Nonetheless he did as he was told, not wanting to risk his grade being lowered for disobeying the instructions. Only after the 10 minutes of stretches had passed did he get to go the edge of the running track where he had to wait for Jim to explain the soccer game he was having the other students play while he administered Jeremy's test.
That task done, Jim looked at his clip board and fumbled with his stop watch for a moment before walking over to Jeremy and ordering him to begin the test. He watched closely as Jeremy assumed a proper position for the push-ups, started the stopwatch and shouted "go!"
Jeremy began the exercise, lowering his body to the ground and then pushing with his arms to raise his body back up until they were once again straight. Jim watched, barking at Jeremy to keep his form proper and counting off only the properly done push-ups. Jeremy was starting to groan with the effort that it was taking for him to keep up the rhythm and his repetitions were getting slower with each one until he finally missed three beeps, having failed to completely do a push-up in proper form and rhythm three consecutive times. Jim scribbled down something, stopped his watch and called Jeremy to halt his exercise.
Jeremy collapsed on the ground panting and allowed himself to rest for a minute. That one test has pushed him pretty hard, but not so much that he couldn't continue. His arms felt sore however, and he knew that it was only the beginning. While he took his moment of rest, Jim looked back towards the middle of the field, silently taking note that the soccer game was still progressing. He turned back towards Jeremy, his silent glare urging the boy up before he had to yell. Jeremy pulled himself into position for sit-ups and Jim knelt down to hold his feet still.
Sixty seconds later, it was over and Jeremy could feel the burning of his sore muscles as he sat on the ground panting. Jim shook his head slightly and marked Jeremy's score on the clipboard. "Ok Jeremy, time to run. You'll be doing a 1 mile run in the shortest time you can manage. GO!"
Jeremy picked himself up, groaning at the effort it required and stepped onto the track, looking down the orange length of the straight section. He needed 8 laps to make his mile run and he was on the clock again. He began at a fast pace, running as if being chased by XANA for many seconds before recalling Yumi's advice, that pacing himself was going to be the best strategy. Slowing down to a more reasonable jog, Jeremy attempted to maintain that pace.
But as he made his fifth circuit, he could feel his legs burning along with the rest of his body, and he wanted to stop. Jogging along a track by himself was incredibly boring and he almost longed to be part of the soccer game if he was going to be forced to run. At least in the game there would be company and a goal to focus on, anything other than the mindless orange surface, the white stripes that marked it, his sore muscles and his fears of inadequacy. He glanced over to the playing field and caught site of Ulrich, the boy's words floating to his mind from their resting place in his memory. "There's no easy answer or magic solution, just get out there and do it. If you have to, imagine XANA chasing you, or Aelita in danger. You can take so much more than you ever thought with only a reason to continue."
Other memories came to the surface, of Ulrich and Yumi getting up after bone shattering blows from XANA to continue fighting. He knew that what they had been through was much worse than what he was experiencing right now. In fact, even the thought of complaining made him seem pathetic in comparison. Ignoring his protesting legs, he picked up his pace, determined to finish this in a respectable time at any cost.
"STOP!" Jim called out as Jeremy passed him for the eighth time. He pressed the stop button on the stopwatch and wrote down the time it displayed, seeming mildly impressed.
"Now..." He stopped and looked around seemingly confused until he spied the bleachers. "Now, we need to see about doing some pull-ups."
Jeremy walked with Jim, staring at the bleachers as though they had just become some sort of torture instrument. Two students abandoned the soccer game, curious as to where Jim was leading Jeremy and what was going to happen. After they had left the field without getting caught, more students walked towards the bleachers until finally everyone was headed over to watch. They saw Jim lift Jeremy up so that he could grab a cross bar that was otherwise higher than the boy could reach.
Jeremy felt his arms stretch as they took his weight and, since he was facing into the bleachers, didn't see the crowd that was slowly gathering behind him. He focused on his task, instead of his surroundings, and forced his arms to pull himself up. It was much more effort than a push-up as he strained to himself towards the bar. Much more slowly than he wanted, his head inched up towards the bar; the strain and effort plain on his face for anybody under the bleachers to see. He tuned out the commotion behind him and focused on pulling himself over the bar.
Odd watched as Jim turned towards the gathered crowd and glared at them, silently demanding that the students return to their game. Most ignored him, gawking at Jeremy and whispering amongst themselves. While Jim started issuing commands for the mob to return to the playing field, Odd slipped out of the crowd and ducted under the bleachers. He moved until he was facing Jeremy, seeing the boy's face contorted with the strain he was inflicting on himself and colored cherry red by his effort. With a nice smirk, he raised his camera phone and whispered, "Say cheese."
"GET BACK TO THE FIELD NOW!" Jim finally bellowed at the mulling students. "Go before I fail each and every one of you."
That seemed to do the trick, and as Ulrich returned to the playing field, the rest of the class followed. Odd slipped out from the bleachers and joined the retreating group. Aelita meanwhile lingered behind, still watching her boyfriend push himself for every centimeter of height he could manage. He had made it far enough up that the top of his head was level with the crossbar he was holding on to, and she couldn't help but feel proud of him. Sure both Odd and Ulrich would have easily done full pull-ups by now, but this was Jeremy and he was doing better than she had expected.
Just as Jim turned to her, probably with the intent of demanding that she go back with the other students, she heard a grunt from Jeremy and then saw his strength fail him. His body dropped and wrenched his hands free of the bar he had been holding, allowing him to fall to the ground with a light crunch. Ignoring Jim's glare and acting faster than he could, she ran to Jeremy's side and began helping him up, alert for any signs of injury.
"Stones," Jim barked, causing them to separate, "Get to the soccer game on the double."
"Yes sir." Aelita replied, still seeming reluctant to leave Jeremy behind.
Jim glanced back at Jeremy, asking him if he was hurt and giving him a moment to recover.
"I'm fine Jim." Jeremy assured him as he picked himself up with groan of pain. He noticed Aelita walking slowly towards the field and hastened to catch up with her.
Aelita walked with Jeremy after he caught up, conscious that Jim was following close behind, and wondered why he couldn't have been given another few minutes or even a pass on the rest of the class. But Jeremy didn't, and probably wouldn't, ask. Nor would he be willing to accept if she asked for him. He wanted to make a good impression to help make up for his absences and she understood, even if she could still blame him for trying to push himself too hard. "Don't get yourself hurt." She whispered to Jeremy before they rejoined the rest of the class.
A while later, Jim's whistle to signal the end of class was quite possibly the most welcome sound Jeremy had heard all day. He wiped the sweat off of his brow and began the slow walk back to the building, noting that his friends were heading towards him. Odd made it over first, looking him over for a moment then asking "So Jeremy, how was your first real workout? Different from being on the computer all day, wasn't it?"
"Aww come on Odd, lay off of him." Ulrich defended his heavily panting friend.
"What?" Odd answered with a shrug, "It was just a question."
"Tiring," Jeremy answered as Aelita walked up, "but worth it if I pass."
"Ulrich will certainly agree when he's spending his time in Yumi's arms!" Odd exclaimed, drawing a blush from Ulrich. "Doubt he'll-"
"Odd!" Ulrich called sharply, in an attempt to avoid whatever embarrassing thing the blond was going to say.
"What's so wrong with being in the arms of the girl you love?" Aelita asked as she bumped her side against Jeremy and slung an arm around his neck.
"Nothing." Ulrich answered, snickering as Aelita crinkled her nose and withdrew from Jeremy. "But that doesn't mean I like Odd teasing me about it."
Odd put his hands on Ulrich's shoulders in what was supposed to be a comforting gesture. "I'm just trying to make sure you and Yumi enjoy what we're all working so hard to make happen, good buddy."
"And trying to make the most of their discomfort?" Jeremy asked after stealing a glance at Aelita. He faced back forward, realizing that he really needed a shower and that's why Aelita had so softly recoiled from him.
"Trying to get them over it." Odd replied with some indignation.
"You could always tease Herve and Sissi." Ulrich replied.
"Oh no you don't." Aelita warned upon seeing Odd look around for the aforementioned couple with a predatory smile, "Sissi's old friends are already giving her and Herve enough grief."
Odd's smile fell as he swallowed the taunt he was thinking of when Sissi and Herve joined the foursome on their way back to the school. He greeted them with a cordial hello instead and then turned his attention back to Jeremy. "Going to catch up to Jim and see how you did, Ms. Belpois?" He paused a second then added, "Or should that be Mrs.?" Odd grinned at the couple then took off running as they glared at him, daring Jeremy to chase if he was able.
"Oh that's right, Jeremy's only hope of- Umph" Herve started to sneer before being elbowed, and not very gently, by Sissi.
"Herve, why don't you go get a shower and meet me for dinner." Sissi said after he'd recovered. Once he was out of earshot, she turned towards Jeremy and considered a moment then asked hesitantly "So, still think you should have activated that tower?"
Aelita turned her head, looking expectantly at Jeremy. She was over her anger, at least for the most part, but she was also still wondering about that.
Ulrich simply groaned, wondering if he was about to witness another fight.
With an apologetic look at Aelita, Jeremy answered honestly. "Yeah, I do. Even with just a fraction of the tower's power, I could have done so much better." He looked down at himself, "Or at least not felt like this afterwards."
Ulrich spoke quickly, not giving anyone a chance to speak. "It's normal to feel tired and achy, especially after doing so much after so little physical activity."
Jeremy shook his head in disgust, and Aelita opened her mouth to say something but Sissi cut her off. "What would a tower have done anyway?" She asked, genuinely curious but also trying to follow Ulrich's lead.
"It would have boosted his strength and stamina to superhuman levels but posed a risk of killing him, getting my secret exposed, or causing some other kind of harm we don't know of." Aelita snapped before continuing more gently, "but if it didn't, Jeremy wouldn't feel anywhere near this bad after gym class and he would have had much higher scores." She poked him gently in the side then sniffed the air and made a show of crinkling her nose, "And he'd smell much better."
"Hey, I don't smell that bad."
"Hate to break it to you but yeah, you actually do," Ulrich teased before breaking into a run. "And you'll just have to endure it for a while longer." He added, calling over his shoulder.
Sissi watched him go for a moment then turned to Aelita with a slightly cruel smile, "Well if the guy who rooms with Odd said Jeremy stinks, then Jeremy must really stink."
Aelita chuckled, "Seriously, it's not that bad while I can hold my breath."
"Funny." Jeremy deadpanned. Somewhere in the background, he could hear the band's drummer play 'ba-dum tss' and made a mental note to kill the drummer when he was done with his shower.
"Oh lighten up..." Aelita replied, punching him playfully in the shoulder, "Get yourself a shower and come find me when you're done." She walked a few paces ahead with Sissi but then looked over her shoulder and realized that she may be taking this whole thing too far since he seemed to be sulking. She stopped and let him catch up, glanced around and slipped her hand into his. "I'm just playing..." She stopped as Jeremy squeezed her hand and walked the rest of the way to the dorms with him.
When Jeremy entered his room she turned around, intent on heading up to her room to grab her shower kit and a change of clothes. But as she walked away from Jeremy's room, she noticed Jim heading for his room with the clipboard from class. Curious as to why he hadn't headed right for his office in the Administration building after class, she approached him. "Jim?"
Jim turned the key to his lock and opened the door before turning towards Aelita looking slightly startled, "Oh, Uh... Ms Stones, what can I do for you?"
"Sorry, I didn't mean to sneak up on you," she answered with a bit of a frown, "but I was curious if you could give me an early look at Jeremy's grades." She looked pointedly at the clip board and Jim spoke up before she could ask anything else.
"You know that I can't discuss another student's grades with another student, it's a matter of, Uh... Teacher student confidentiality. Kind of like when I worked at a hospital and couldn't talk about the patients."
Aelita looked the large man over once, quirking a light pink eyebrow in amusement, "You worked in a hospital?"
"I'd rather not talk about it."
"Of course." Aelita answered kindly, still hoping for a peek at Jeremy's scores. "But this is different. See Yumi and I agreed to be Jeremy's personal trainers and we need to see his official scores in order to better train Jeremy. You wouldn't have prevented one doctor from finding out something about another doctor's patient, right?"
Jim frowned, and a confused expression appeared on his face for a moment as he grappled with Aelita's logic. After a moment's deliberation he sighed and handed the clipboard over to Aelita then somewhat sheepishly told her to wait while he went into his room. About seven minutes later he came out with a ragged looking collection of papers and began paging through them. His expression brightened as he handed the bundle to Aelita, folded so that the list of scores and percentiles for female teenagers was on top.
Aelita leaned her back against the wall and began comparing Jim's scribbled notes against the printed charts, awkwardly fumbling with the paper when she had to turn the pages while still holding the clipboard. He placed just under the 80th percentile for push-ups, 65th percentile for sit-ups, 75th percentile for the mile run and around the 60th percentile for pull-ups.
Out of curiosity, she flipped the charts to the boys and shuddered, he had come in 30th, 30th, 35th, and 10th for boys. Though she did suspect that Jeremy might have been able to do a pull up if he had been fresh instead of tired from the previous tests. It was a dismal showing but not unexpected and certainly not something she would even consider holding against him. Unfortunately, even his scores as a female would rank a C if they were averaged as test scores. It was obviously better than failing, but Jeremy wouldn't be happy with it. She frowned as she gave the clipboard and charts back to Jim. "So he's earned a B?" She asked hopefully.
Jim gave another confused look to Aelita before answering. "Um... Yeah, I suppose he could have... I haven't looked at where he would place."
"80, 65, 75, and 60." She answered quickly, "Above average in all categories and he still managed to play the game with the rest of the class after he was done with your test." Though it wasn't exactly a shining performance, she admitted to herself.
Jim looked over the numbers for just a minute then looked down at Aelita and shook his head before scribbling down a note on the clipboard. "Yeah sure, he earned a B," Jim answered, seemingly relieved at having not had to do any calculations on his own.
"Thanks Jim." Aelita answered happily before she turned away and started down the hall, headed towards the stairwell. As she headed up the stairs, she couldn't help but wonder if she could have talked Jim into giving Jeremy an A. But it was no use second guessing that now and her mind turned to making sure they all made the most of the remaining study time before exams.
[[[[[]]]]]
Kadic Academy, Ulrich and Odd's room, Sunday 9:33 PM: Ulrich double checked his set of folders, making sure that everything he needed for tomorrow's test was present and accounted for. On his desk were a colorful array of folders, one for each subject. Each contained only a handful of items: Fresh lined paper, fresh graph paper, a working pen and a couple of freshly sharpened pencils in a plastic pouch. In other words, the sum total of what was allowed in the classroom during exams. He collected them all and shoved them into his empty back-pack before searching his desk for the calculator he was allowed to have on the math and science tests. He smiled, seeing a note that was more Jeremy than Aelita written in Aelita's neat cursive taped to the lid.
Ulrich,
You'll find all the functions and programs you're allowed to use on the math test under the menu Meyer and all the functions and programs you're allowed to use during the science exam under the menu Hertz.
Good luck,
Jeremy and Aelita
"That's our two geniuses," Yumi said as she read the note, "always looking for a way to help."
Ulrich looked up and quickly turned around, surprised by Yumi's presence since he hadn't heard her come in. "Yeah." Ulrich replied as he grabbed and held up a bright red folder that contained the set of study guides the pair had created for each member of the group save themselves, "it is." The packets were customized based on a practice exam that had been administered on Lyoko and contained concepts and examples that they hadn't gotten as well as suggestions for taking the tests based on how they did the exam on Lyoko.
"You didn't find it kind of creepy, them observing us like some sort of lab rats?" Odd asked despite wanting to make a discrete exit to give the two lovebirds some privacy.
"You didn't even know they were watching us until after they told us about it." Yumi replied.
"Besides, you're only upset because Sissi got a higher grade than you." Ulrich added casually.
"By two points." Odd defended, "and I still contend that it was a trick question that got me."
"Odd, the answer to the sample test question you gave me," Ulrich pulled the red folder out and looked it over, reading the question out loud: "Solve [2x-y+3z = 8], [x-6y-z = 0], and [-6x+3y+9z= 24] for X, Y and Z, is wrong. Your x value is off by at least 3."
"Oh..."
"... You spent 10 minutes plugging in every number and trying to see if it worked, right?"
"Yes..."
Yumi sighed wearily and pinched the bridge of her nose with her thumb and forefinger while the pair argued.
[[[[[]]]]]
One stressful, worrisome week later and exams were over, though as they waited in the hall to be let into the conference room, a particular group of seven students still radiated pre-exam tension. The reason was simple, and almost everyone at school knew why. Beyond the closed door was Ulrich's father. The demon that Ulrich had had to live with all of his life but which all of them now had to face together.
Aelita took Jeremy's hand and squeezed it, unaware that Yumi did the same thing with Ulrich. Odd looked up from this game system, the handheld device currently offering him an escape from thinking about the meeting that loomed ahead. Beside him, sitting on the floor cross-legged was William. The black haired teen looked bored, glancing down the hallways as if he intended to make a thorough inspection of every single sound he heard despite not moving from his spot.
Sissi stood beside William and like him was looking rather bored as she leaned against the wall. She considered what Ulrich's father may be like while she waited, trying to recall everything she had learned about him. Odd had summed the man up in one word: Evil. Jeremy had the practical angles already figured out though: Mr. Stern was a high income and powerful attorney in the corporate world. He specialized in defending corporations from liability suits brought on by both legitimate and illegitimate causes.
Yumi had put Ulrich's father into more emotional terms, summarizing him as very cold and distant. And indeed, the very few times Ulrich's father had visited the school that's exactly how he had come off. But looking back on her own life before joining the group, Sissi realized that Ulrich's father believed himself superior. No one else, possibly including his only child, was worthy of his respect. If Ulrich wanted that, he'd have to earn on his father's terms. It was a very much like the way she once treated everyone around the school, and it was simply wrong for family to treat one another that way.
Ulrich blushed as he felt Yumi take his hand into hers, the gesture spreading pleasant warmth up his arm. He smiled briefly to her when she squeezed gently then frowned as the worry reasserted itself. If this didn't go well it would be his last day at Kadic and no matter how much the others tried to reassure him, that fact weighted heavily on his mind. He glanced around, seeing Jeremy and Aelita standing next to one another, Odd leaning against the wall, William sitting on the floor and Sissi standing next to him. When his father had first sent him here, he would never have guessed that these people would be his best friends. Now he didn't want to imagine life without them, yet that was the prospect he was facing as the clack of shoes against the tile floor caught the attention of every student. With an efficient motion, Mr. Delmas' secretary opened the door to admit the gathered students. She smiled as they all filed in, seemingly unaffected by the standing tension.
[[[[[]]]]]
First impressions. Despite going straight to the principal's office before being led to the conference room where he would be meeting with his son, Henric Stern had still managed to gather some vital information about the school. For one thing the grounds looked nicely maintained, the buildings seeming in good condition despite their age and the courtyard was clean and tidy despite the students who used the area on a daily basis. He could say less for some of the staff, but then again those who stayed in academics had to have something off about them in the first place. Overall, it wasn't a bad place but the fact that it allowed students like those Ulrich choose to surround himself with was a very big black mark, no matter how much the principal or his son disagreed.
Still, his wife's arguing and his son's threat of extreme embarrassment had compelled him to come here and see what those students had that made both the principal and his son so defensive of them. From what information he was able to collect, Jeremy Belpois was a borderline genius, having failed an intelligence test designed to see if he could be moved to a more challenging school but still getting straight A's. He was also French and born to a moderately wealthy family that had no trouble affording the boarding school they sent their son to.
The next file he had seen was that of Yumi Ishiyama. She was a Japanese student who lived at home rather than boarding at the school. One year ahead of Ulrich, she had okay grades but, like the rest of Ulrich's group, had piled up the absences. Then there was Ulrich's roommate, Odd Della Robbia. With mediocre grades, absences, and numerous marks for bad behavior Odd was trouble.
The last member of Ulrich's friends, and the one with the shortest record, was Aelita Stones. She was a boarder with no living family, her expenses being paid by some sort of scholarship. Her good grades couldn't make up for the fact that she was a charity case that Ulrich should never have been associated with. Sure, charity cases could do wonders in the media if your company had a bad rap, but other than that they were a waste of resources. He was certain he'd taught his son better than to associate with such people unless-
The sound of the conference room door being opened interrupted his thoughts and he looked up to get his first look at the troublemakers his son associated with. Seven students filed in and split up, making their way along both sides of the long, rectangular table that occupied the center of the room. Noise filled the room as wheeled chairs were moved and the students took seats near the head of the table.
It wasn't the first time he'd actually seen the students, though it was the first time he would actually be interacting with them so he stood up straight to demonstrate that he was the authority figure in the room and that he was the one in control. A small smile of satisfaction was offered to each student, the practiced smile to put them at ease while he noted the tension that was present on every single body that walked through the door. The fact that they all seemed to understand the gravity of the situation was definitely a good thing, it showed that maybe they had some potential.
He gave a very slight, disgusted shake of his head at the thought, hopefully not enough to catch the attention of any of the students. The opinion had been his wife's, and Ulrich's of course, but none of the students now taking their seats at the table had yet earned such respect from him. On the basis of the written reports that their teachers filed she believed that there was still hope for Ulrich and his friends. Exactly how much hope remained to be determined. People could do amazing things when put under pressure, but so often they couldn't sustain that sort of performance.
Noticing that the room was quieting down, Mr. Stern calmly sat down and took one more moment to gaze around the room. He could see the pink haired girl leaving less space between herself and the blond haired boy wearing the blue shirt than the others chose to leave themselves. The boy and girl after that seemed to sit apart from the others, almost as if they didn't feel they belonged. On the other side of the table there was his son and next to him was a blacked haired Asian teen that seemed to be offering looks of support to him. Next to her was a gay looking, scrawny boy who obviously loved the color purple a little too much.
Principal Delmas watched Ulrich's father as he finished scanning the assembled teens and gently cleared his throat, capturing the attention of the room. With all eyes on him he began to make the introductions, hopefully the first stage of convincing the man to allow his son to remain at Kadic. He gestured to Jeremy, who stood up and offered his hand to Mr. Stern. "This is Jeremy, our top student here and one of the young men and woman who have been helping your son achieve the remarkable improvement we've witnessed."
Jeremy suppressed the urge to wince as Mr. Stern squeezed his hand in an overly firm handshake and tried not to wither under the man's gaze. But projecting self confidence wasn't a trait that Jeremy excelled at and while he managed to remain looking into Henric's face, he didn't fully meet his eyes as he offered a somewhat meek sounding greeting. After giving a curt nod of acknowledgement, the tall man turned his attention to Aelita, leaving Jeremy feeling like he had just failed a test.
Aelita stood up next, her eyes holding some smoldering resentment over the way Mr. Stern was trying to dominate and intimidate the group. She locked her gaze with his briefly as she leaned slightly to offer her hand. He shook it much more delicately than he had Jeremy's, but his eyes were cold and calculating; it was as if he was sizing her up for value. The thought was uncomfortable and she shivered slightly. While Principal Delmas moved on to introduce William she sat down and looked over at Ulrich, sharing a sympathetic look with him.
William stood up and looked up at Mr. Stern, hoping that he was doing a good job of hiding his usual lack of care for authority figures. It wasn't for Ulrich of course, but Yumi would never forgive him if he was the reason that Ulrich failed this meeting. But there was more than that at stake too. This group of people was finally starting to accept him and he was starting to like how that felt. So for the sake of his new friendship he forced a cordial smile and nodded politely. However, as he sat down he couldn't help but wonder how this was going to go. Ulrich's dad seemed like the father of the girl that got him kicked out of his last school, completely convinced that he was right and everybody else had to be wrong.
Sissi stood up, resisting the almost over-powering urge to correct her father when he used her full name, and offered the same sort of polite nod that William had. The man she once hoped would be her father-in-law returned the nod and offered a slight, but respectful smile in return. The gesture seemed to be more than any of the others had gotten and she glanced briefly at her father out of habit, wondering if she was merely the recipient of social grace that Ulrich's father thought was required rather than something she was entitled to.
Which she, as she sat down and watched the next introduction, realized was the most likely answer. There had been many kids over the years that gave her a sort of grudging respect because she was the head master's daughter and so she recognized the look. At one time she welcomed it, considering it a mark of her own superiority. Right now however, it was insulting to think that the only thing that made her worth more than the others gathered in this room was that she was the principal's daughter.
Odd stood up and looked directly into Henric Stern's eyes as he extended his hand across the table to shake. A sense of righteous anger burned in his eyes and he didn't care if the overbearing and frankly terrible father could see it. The man deserved to know that not everyone would be intimidated into meek submission and that someone would fight back. However as the man's eyes continued to bore into him with relentless intensity and condemnation Odd couldn't help but wonder if he was helping or hurting Ulrich. He let his gaze shift, giving up the staring contest, and sat back down, feeling defeated.
Yumi stood up and offered a firm handshake, while maintaining a respectful pose and expression. It was easy to see where Ulrich got his good looks from; his father was tall and lean without looking weak. But his expression seemed... severe, though not quite. He carried a cordial enough expression but it was off, like it was forced for a sinister purpose. She forced her own smile as she realized that Ulrich's father was looking her over more closely than he had the others; she worried about what was going on inside of the man's head.
Mr. Stern sat back down and maintained proper posture while he let the teens in the room consider their first encounter with him. None of them had done much to dispel is initial assessment of them, which was a bad sign overall. Aelita was prettier than he'd originally expected, though she seemed completely attached to Jeremy and thus had nothing to really offer Ulrich. Even worse, she had given a pitying look to Ulrich. There was no way someone who was literally dependent on the charity of others should pity Ulrich. Though the purple clad boy he roomed with did come close to inspiring pity. Odd looked every bit as stupid as his record made him out to be and further, he looked gay as well. It wasn't exactly a winning combination.
Yumi on the other hand, looked like she might have a bit of potential. She was definitely unnerved by the way he had stared at her, but unlike some of the other women he had to negotiate against, she managed to hold her ground despite it. If it wasn't likely to cause embarrassing problems with the school's headmaster, he would have been inclined to continue staring to see how she handled it. As it was, he had to settle for wondering how much of Yumi's average grades and long string of absences were related to the others and how much was her fault. She was the oldest of the group after all, and she should have kept the others in line and on task.
Mr. Delmas watched with a measure of concern as Ulrich's father settled back down after the introductions were complete and opened the folder he brought. Each teenager looked somewhat unsettled by the meeting so far and worst of all, the man had not even bothered to recognize his son. Instead he was letting the silence stretch out as he reviewed the paperwork containing Ulrich's test results and evaluation reports; work which should already have been done at home with his wife.
Ulrich watched his father page through the chronologically ordered reports on him and his progress with growing dread. His hope for a quote unquote fair trial was sinking fast and he glanced around the room, his eyes kept low and his expression apologetic. Yumi reached out under the table and grasped Ulrich's hand, squeezing it tight as a gesture of support. He glanced over and smiled gratefully as he squeezed her hand back.
Henric waited just a little bit longer continuing to discreetly observe the room as the assembled group stewed in their worries and fears while he pretended to be unprepared yet supremely confident. As a negotiating tactic it had worked wonders in the past and it was yielding fruit here and now as well. His son glanced around the room, looking to each of his friends with a pitiful expression. The black-haired girl he came in with and sat down next to offered him something to make him smile briefly. They were probably holding hands just out of sight of the table.
"Well Ulrich," his father started as he slowly closed the folder he'd brought, "it looks like you've actually managed an improvement." Now if only you had demonstrated more independence, he added to himself with the intention of bringing that up later.
Ulrich lightly sighed in relief, quickly covering it up with a cough as he saw his father raise an eyebrow in amusement.
"I mean... thank you, dad" Ulrich mumbled, still in disbelief at his luck.
"I must say," he continued, straightening his tie and giving his son a slight smile. "Your improvements have shown me that you are quite capable of handling matters, such as dealing with higher levels of math. I am sure you will be able to handle Pre-Calculus well next year."
Ulrich's face visibly paled.
"But don't think you'll get off that easy just yet" Henric continued as he ignored his son's reaction to the thought of Calculus, instead tenting his fingers and clearing his throat. "There are still some matters I need to discuss with you."
"Uh oh..." he faintly heard Odd whisper to Jeremy.
"Shut it" Jeremy harshly whispered back, indicating to Ulrich's father with his darting blue pupils.
Henric glanced between Odd and Jeremy without moving anything but his eyes then looked back to Ulrich and continued as though nothing had happened. "One thing I've noticed about your academic ability is how it correlates to your social behavior..." here, he paused dramatically, looking at each and every one of his son's friends.
Jeremie tugged the neck of his turtleneck anxiously, Aelita bit her bottom lip nervously, Yumi squeezed Ulrich's hand just a little tighter, and Odd's eyes were glazed over, already thinking of how everything could go wrong in a single instant. If XANA was still alive right now, he would have initiated an attack at this opportune moment and forced the Lyoko Warriors to bail out of the room and potentially earn themselves demerits- or worse, detention. However, a XANA attack was starting to sound better than sitting in an ugly, cramped room waiting for Henric's judgment on his son.
"I believe that you are being too dependent on these friends of yours." He intoned, casually leaning back on his chair. "Though I am... pleased... with the amount of progress that you've made so far, I don't think it is enough, nor do I accept the way it was achieved."
Both Jeremy and Yumi bristled with anger, knowing just how much work Ulrich put into this, not to mention their own. Both held their tongue however, and were amazed that Odd did as well. Ulrich on the other hand...
"What do you mean?" Ulrich all but growled; Henric's pleasant demeanor slid into one of the most infuriated frowns Ulrich had ever seen.
"I do not expect you to talk like that to me, young man." he scolded, glaring his teenage son in his eyes.
Ulrich didn't even flinch, just continued to fixate his pupils on his father's own hollow black ones. Years of being derogated endlessly by his very own father had been negated by his success as a Lyoko warrior and he had finally gathered enough courage to speak out against unfair actions. After all the near-death incidents XANA had created, speaking with his father now seemed like a pebble in comparison to a mountain.
"I didn't realize that asking you a reasonable question was considered talking," the German boy responded coldly.
"Perhaps it is your friends' fault that you are acting this way." Henric mused idly, sizing each and every one of the Lyoko Warriors up and including Sissi in the inspection as well.
William opened his mouth and moved to say something to intervene, but Ulrich had already beat him to the punch, hands shaking with pure rage. Principal Delmas rose from his seat at the same time.
"Maybe it was the way you and mom brought me up" Ulrich snapped, grossly disliking how his father always put down his friends every time he visited Kadic Academy for the academic review.
Henric narrowed his eyes in response before uttering a low, sinister chuckle that sent chills up everybody's spines.
Jean Pierre Delmas nervously shifted his weight from one foot to another, anxiously smoothing his pressed suit as he tried to disguise his trembling hands from the authoritarian man. Sweat beaded on his forehead- never before had he had an encounter with such savagery or malevolent behavior presented in the young Mr. Stern's father. What the man was capable of, he did not yet know. All he knew was his impressive records as a student and how it was every parent's wish to see their children grow up and become successful- no matter what the cost was.
"Good news..." Henric whispered in a smooth, dark voice, very different from how anybody in the room had ever heard him speak. "I just figured out how to resolve this situation"
"Mr. Stern" Jean began, trying to defuse the situation.
"I noticed your friends are quite an... amusing collection," he continued, ignoring the principal. "And until now, I have never... discovered... a solution to this little problem."
Sissi and the Lyoko Warriors shuddered involuntarily at the sound of his voice; Mr. Delmas kept attempting to interrupt, but neither warring party paid the poor man any attention.
'Don't do anything stupid, Ulrich' Sissi thought, noticing the familiar sights of what might soon be an all out brawl.
'Go get him, Ulrich!' William mentally cheered, knowing how tenacious his former rival was.
"Take for example, your friends over here. They're not helping you at all. Why, I'm not even sure if this young lad named... Jeremy even has the brainpower to figure out what two plus two is." Jeremie narrowed his eyes at the comment. "I have recently looked through his records and found that he had in fact, failed miserably on a test that would have transferred him to a special school for excellent students. In addition, your odd friend seems to be one of the most idiotic-"
"RAH!" Ulrich angrily howled, ripping himself from Yumi's grasp and launching himself at his father with a hand curled into a fist. "That's it!"
He wanted to make him suffer for all the times he had beaten him nearly into unconsciousness for his repeated abysmal grades when he had studied until he nearly collapsed from exhaustion. He could not see anything but his pompous, snide father, nor hear the desperate cries of his friends and the principal, nor could he think rationally. All that mattered was paying his father back what he owed.
"Ulrich, no!" Jeremy shouted, springing out of his seat to restrain the frothing mad teenager.
"Lemme go, Jeremy! I have a score to settle with him" Ulrich snarled, tugging at his entangled arm like a caged wild animal; for a guy that never worked out, Jeremy had a much stronger grip than he originally thought.
"Sit down, everybody!" Mr. Delmas's voice clearly rang over the brouhaha, fixing the students and especially Mr. Stern a cold, hard glare. "As the principal of this establishment, it is my job to keep everything in order, not to supervise a group of people acting like they were two years old!"
"Then that is another area you have excelled in as well" Henric commented sarcastically, giving the elderly man a derisive smirk. "Your employment position as the principal of this... fine... school is no longer paramount."
Mr. Delmas shot icy daggers at Mr. Stern, but it had no effect on the cool, calculating man. Jean seethed quietly in anger, but tried not to show it; how dare that man insult his position at one of France's finest academies for grade and primary school education!
"Ulrich," he continued in a more serious tone, bluntly abandoning the smoother, dark voice he had favored earlier in the conversation. "You can't even defend your honor or your friends... another failure I have to add to your three mile long list of delinquency. How are you going to survive in life!"
"He has friends!" Jeremie interjected loudly, causing the scolding man to whip around and face him.
"Friends?" Mr. Stern asked, thoughtfully rubbing his chin with a sinister smirk plastered on his face while looking at each teenager in turn. "How can you call yourselves friends of Ulrich when all you've brought him is poor grades and bad classroom reports?"
Odd looked up angrily, "We gave him a family that loved him, that offered support and understanding instead of constant judgment. We showed him fun and-"
"FUN!" Mr. Stern interrupted with a roar, "What use is fun when he can't get a job, hmm? Will you be supporting him for the rest of your life?"
"Yes!" Odd answered, puffing his chest and sticking his chin out defiantly, "If I had to, I would do it."
Henric Stern laughed, "How? What will you be able to do to afford to feed and house two people when all you do is slack off?"
"Odd won't have to support Ulrich," Aelita interjected, "Ulrich is taking his schoolwork seriously now and he has all the incentive he needs to succeed."
"What might that be, young lady?" Mr. Stern asked, sounding genuinely curious. "And what evidence do you have to support your claim?"
Aelita looked between Ulrich and Yumi then spoke, sounding less sure of herself under Mr. Stern's harsh gaze. "He has Yumi to build a life with."
Ulrich's father snorted loudly with derision, causing Aelita to look to away in shame. She could feel the hot tears beginning to build up and tried to hold them back, but one crystal-like tear cascaded down reddened cheeks. Weakness was never a good thing to let an enraged tyrant see. Though she was never usually this emotional, it pained her to see how easily he dismissed their arguments, treated his son like dirt, and still had the guts to rant on and on about how worthless he, his friends, and this school were.
"You really think you're good enough for my son?" He demanded of Yumi, having turned away from Aelita just before she had started to cry.
"Yumi is kind and understanding," Jeremy spoke up for his friend, forcing a calm, businesslike manner, "and she's the type who will defend those she cares about no matter what. If Ulrich was my son, she would the type of woman I'd want him to date." Yumi threw a glare at Jeremy, angry that he would feel the need to defend her.
Henric's eyes darted back and forth, his mind processing information at speeds that would daunt even the most powerful computer. Finally, the grin appeared again, and with venom in every word, he spoke them crystal clear, not even bothering to disguise his immense satisfaction.
"You will go to the military school I had attended when I was your age. Perhaps they will instill a sense of respect for your elders into your head and teach you what real discipline and life is like."
Ulrich nearly choked as he exerted every ounce of his will to hold back his overwhelming rage. The Lyoko Warriors exchanged worried glances with each other; Yumi squeezed Ulrich's hand until her knuckles turned white and the German boy hissed in pain.
"I was a lad just like you were- a bumbling, infantile boy with childish imaginations in my head." Henric continued, ignoring the reactions of his unwilling audience. "Look at me now!" he crowed, pulling back a sleeve to display some muscle growth. "I am independent, and I didn't need any friends to get to where I am now. I toughed it out to become one of the top students in the school, treated the weaklings like the scum they were, and... convinced my fellow classmates to back off if they had-" he paused, and snickered to himself, leaving everybody to imagine how ruthless Henric was even as a young adult. "Aspirations." He finished with a cruel look.
Yumi and Sissi both inhaled sharply at how merciless their friend's father was. Odd growled under his breath, and William's eyebrows knitted together in anger. Jeremy furrowed his brow in concentration, his mind trying to figure out the best course of action.
"Academically, I see nothing in your friends to make me think for even one second that your success and foothold in life is guaranteed."
"Excuse me, sir" Jeremie rebutted, standing up and going nose to nose with the man. "But Aelita and I have been tutoring him and assisting him with his studies."
"Is that so?" Mr. Stern asked sarcastically, wondering what the point was.
"Yes" Jeremie responded firmly. "I, along with my compatriots in this very room, have supported Ulrich and given him a suitable environment in which he can succeed in. What do you, the very father of this boy you enjoy ranting about, know about the effort he exerted to do better academically, just so that he can please you?"
"I know enough" Henric responded coldly. "My son barely scraping a B in one of the easiest subjects for his grade level of this school... convinces me that he is not working to his full potential. I had expected straight A's. I may be strict to the point of being his personal drill Sargent, but at least I know how to straighten him up so that he'll have a fighting chance in life. It's more than you'll ever be able to give him."
"You'll fail." Jeremy stated forcefully, now in full military commander mode. He too had once treated his friends as though they were his personal pawns in his personal war. It rarely ever worked.
"Is that so." Henric Stern replied harshly, glaring down at the boy. "What makes you so sure of that."
"I know Ulrich better than you." Jeremy replied matter-of-factly without backing down. "He worked as hard as any of us have ever seen him and he did so for himself, and for us."
"Yet he stands there," Henrich answered the overly calm teenage, his voice seemingly rising with each word until he was yelling at the end; "Cowering behind you and your ilk, too timid to even be having this conversation with me himself and too stupid or lazy to have gotten good enough grades to avoid all of this in the first place!"
Jeremy flinched slightly, feeling a sudden wave of guilt. He pushed it away as quickly as he could and answered Henric's challenge heatedly. "Ulrich isn't stupid, and if you'd tried to encourage and help him rather than berate him you'd see that."
"And if Jeremy had let him punch you-" Odd started to say.
"He'd be unconscious." Henric interrupted confidently, turning a hard glare on the purpled-haired boy.
"So would you." Yumi replied with steel in her voice. William stood behind her to her left and Odd moved to stand behind her and just to her right.
"ENOUGH!" Principal Delmas screamed, capturing all the attention in the room. "How many times do I need to remind you that this is not-"
"None." Mr. Stern cut him off. "I'll be pulling Ulrich out of here just as soon as I can arrange a spot in the military academy." With that, he shot the teenagers in the room one final loathing look. Briskly striding from the room after that, he stopped just as he stepped outside the conference room, halted by Aelita's strained voice.
He regarded the girl, her wet eyes and puffy cheeks suggesting that she had been suppressing tears. Looking down at her, his expression holding impatience and not even a trace of sympathy he demanded an explanation for why she had told him to stop.
"We'll find a way to prevent this." Jeremy spoke before Aelita could answer. She glared at Jeremy then turned back to Ulrich's father.
"I'm the reason Ulrich doesn't have better grades." Her soft voice tore at the teenagers and principal in the room. But while Mr. Delmas was curious and the teenagers were horrified, Mr. Stern seemed to only grow more impatient as she continued. "Ulrich, everyone assembled here except for Sissi and William, had to give up study time and even cut classes to..." Her uncertainty caused her voice to falter as she felt the eyes of her family on her.
"Go on." Mr. Delmas prompted gently.
Aelita bit her lower lip again, suddenly having second thoughts. But she was root cause of this mess so it was her responsibility to do what she could to fix it. "Jeremy found me-"
"Yes I know," Ulrich's father interrupted harshly, "he found you on-line and got you some sort of scholarship and my son and the rest of the group have been supporting your almost worthless person at the cost of their own success. It's just one more good reason to get Ulrich out of here." With that Ulrich's father turned and strode away, leaving shocked silence in his wake.
Now that the threatening presence of his father was no longer in the room, Ulrich felt defeated. On one hand, his urge to denounce his father to everyone and watch his reaction when he came back to Kadic was checked by the possible consequences. On the other hand, he simply didn't know what to do or say anymore.
"Did you have to do that?" Ulrich moaned, breaking several long seconds of silence.
"A good leader never leaves his troops behind" Jeremy stated in a matter-of-fact tone, turning around to meet his friend in the eyes. "A good leader never lets his troops come under fire without any support."
"Yes." Aelita replied softly, her voice sounding strained. "I thought if your father knew he might blame me rather than you and he..."
"It's alright Aelita." Jeremy spoke gently as he put a hand on her shoulder.
Principal Delmas stood there, wondering just what Aelita had been about to say. He somehow doubted that she was going to rehash the story of how she'd come to be here. But Jeremy's touch and a few nods in his direction seemed to convince the pink-haired teenager to say nothing further. He sighed and looked around the room one more time then made a discreet exit, leaving the group to console their friend and each other. When he returned to his office he gave his secretary instructions to allow the teens to remain in the conference room for as long as they needed.
A big thank you goes out to Commando Wolf who wrote a good portion of this in a story-writing swap.
Spyrofan777: Thank you for the review and I'm glad you liked the chapter. As for Odd, I just don't think there is anyone left at Kadic who would be willing to date him. The other thing about Odd is that I don't think he wants any sort of 'real' relationship. He seems to be more interested in having an object that he can use for his own amusement rather than a girlfriend who he respects and understands and will actually treat well.
In regards to William, I just don't feel like trying to create an OC for him and since Sissi is taken by Herve now he won't get a girlfriend. The other thing with giving William a relationship is that I'd have to make more leaps on his personality since there isn't a whole lot to work with on the show.
Krem: Ironically, Odd is my least favorite character of the show and the one I find it hardest to write for. I tend to see him as selfish and uncaring more than anything else. Only after he's really hurt someone does he seem to develop any sense of caring about them. Not that that prevents him from being willing to protect them from physical or external harm. When I say he doesn't seem to care, I mean it doesn't matter to him what he does to his friends until he's forced to see them suffer because of it.
As for the rest of your review, the fact that it was a kids show was really limiting in many ways. Cursing is fairly common though I have to agree that with Aelita, it is severely out of place. She most likely would know the words and their meaning by this point, but she isn't likely to actually use them.
YugiohObsessed: Thank you for your review. I have heard about the 5th season, but I'm not getting my hopes up. Live action can very easily ruin the show and I'm uncertain as to what they'll do with the relationships.
MoonlitxAngel: Thank you for the review and for reading the drafts as I write them. I do hope things get better for you.